I love going to Bosque del Apache National Wildlife Refuge. I feel very fortunate to live close enough that I can be there in about an 1 1/2 hours, which means that I can go there almost any time that I want to go. Usually I concentrate on photographing birds. Last weekend Bosque Bill and I went there, and I decided to take some photos to show what a beautiful place it is. There will still be birds, of course.

I was so happy that Catherine Hamilton, a lovely person and a brilliant artist, came to visit me in December. We had fun birding around the Albuquerque area. One of the “must-do” items on Catherine’s agenda was Rosy Finch banding at Sandia Crest. Catherine, Bosque Bill and I set off early on a cold Sunday morning hoping that the Rosy Finches would appear in significant numbers. It has not been a good snow year in the Sandias, and the Rosy Finches often do not come to the Crest House in large numbers if their other food sources are not covered with snow. However, when we drove into the parking lot at 9:00 a.m., the first thing that we saw was a huge flock of over 100 Rosy Finches circling the Crest House. Catherine jumped out and got all three species and a Steller’s Jay before Bill and I even managed to get our camera equipment together. The pressure was off, and we knew it was going to be an excellent day.

We went inside the Crest House to watch the birds and the banding. Rosy Finches were flying in from everywhere. The trees were full of them.

Rosy Finches in a piñon by the deck at the Crest House.

Even the trees below the deck were covered with Rosy Finches.

Rosy Finches wait in the trees below the deck at the Crest House.

A Black Rosy-Finch studies the goodies on the deck at the Crest House.

A Gray-crowned Rosy Finch flies towards the deck.

There are three Rosy Finch traps. The birds approach very enthusiastically.

I recently spent almost two weeks on the lovely island of Kaua’i. My son and I relaxed, snorkeled, surfed, body boarded and enjoyed the beautiful sights of the island. I enjoyed the birds on the island too. Here are the birds that I saw and photographed.

These birds waited outside the condo every morning hoping to receive some breakfast:

Common Myna (Acridotheres tristis), introduced in 1865, native to India.

Common Myna flying in for a handout.

Red-crested Cardinal (paroaria coronata), introduced in the late 1920's, native to South America.

And of course everywhere we went we saw the Kaua’i chickens. We saw them in the cities …

Rooster in downtown Koloa, Kaua'i.

… and in the mountains.

A hen with a large brood at Kalalau Lookout, Koke'e State Park, Kaua'i.

Other birds which I saw but was not able to photograph or neglected to photograph were: Spotted Dove (Steptopelia chinensis), introduced in the 1870’s, native to Southeast Asia; Japanese White-eye (Zosterops japonicus), introduced in the 1930’s from Japan.